Sweet, roasted butternut squash coat this warm and comforting pasta while garlic and smoked gouda add a bit of richness. With so few ingredients, the stars of this dish really shine. Simple and bursting with flavor yet incredibly easy and hands off; great for a weeknight dinner. I love that this pasta is sophisticated enough for a proper dinner with company, but casual enough for a Monday meal after work. It’s one of my very favorite meals. *If smoked gouda isn’t your thing, any 4 oz of cheese will do.

Wow, it's been awhile! Summer is always a busy time: visiting with friends, doing work around the house and yard, playing with our wee man, and in general spending as much time as possible outside enjoying our gorgeous summer in Alaska.

Now that the leaves have started to fall and the air is bitingly crisp, I feel excited to spend more time here on the blog as winter starts to slink in. I couldn't think of a better way to kick off the fall season than with a recipe I've been meaning to share for a long time.

One of my BFFs makes a butternut squash pasta with just those two ingredients and a splash of olive oil... it's to die for! I knew smoked gouda and roasted garlic would really marry beautifully with the sweet squash so I just had to experiment. This recipe will not let you down. Normally I don't cook with oil (due to Todd's rheumatoid arthritis), but don't skimp on the one tablespoon. There's no sauce in this dish, so you really need that little bit of olive oil to coat the squash and pasta. Happy cooking!

Sweet, roasted butternut squash coat this warm and comforting pasta while garlic and smoked gouda add a bit of richness. With so few ingredients, the stars of this dish really shine. Simple and bursting with flavor yet incredibly easy and hands off; great for a weeknight dinner. I love that this pasta is sophisticated enough for a proper dinner with company, but casual enough for a Monday meal after work. It’s one of my very favorite meals. *If smoked gouda isn’t your thing, any 4 oz of cheese will do.

Yield: 5

Ingredients

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and deseeded and cut into ¾” cubes

1 tbsp olive oil

3 large garlic cloves, left in their peel

12 oz dry spaghetti

½ of one 8 oz. package of Miyoko's Creamery Smoked VeganMozz*

1-2 tsp Johnny’s Seasoning Salt or regular table salt

2 tsp fresh lemon thyme, for garnish (optional)

Cooking Directions

Preheat oven to 400°F. Add the cubed squash to a large casserole dish and toss with oil. Roast for 60 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes. When there’s 20 minutes left, toss in the garlic then bring a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.

Cook the pasta according to package, drain and return to pot. Peel the roasted garlic and smash it into a puree with a spoon in a small bowl. Stir the garlic, cheese, salt, and roasted squash into the pasta.

Seriously delicious and fun, these s'mores scones are a wonderful treat for the youngins and those who are young at heart. Studded with chocolate chunks and bits of graham cracker, they are drizzled with chocolate as well as a marshmallow glaze then topped with crushed graham cracker. These are incredibly easy to make and done in a flash; so be the hit of the bonfire or party with my s’mores scones!

Oh yes my friends... two of the most perfect foods have been combined: s'mores and scones. I cannot think of anything more delicious. These were developed for the baby shower of a good friend last weekend and they were a hit! I'm always trying to think of new scone flavors and when pondering the tasty flavor for the shower I was hit with a massive s'mores craving! I was dancing up and down when I told Todd my idea. My eagerness for bonfires, s'mores, and general Alaskan summer fun is really ramping up.

For my birthday last week I may have made funfetti scones... I think I have a problem... #sconelife

And guess what else!? Today is Todd's and my FIVE year veganniversary! Holy moly, you guys. If you want to learn more about why and how we went vegan (it happened overnight I might add!) head on over to the new About - Our Story page to find out all the deets. But first... scones.

Seriously delicious and fun, these s'mores scones are a wonderful treat for the youngins and those who are young at heart. Studded with chocolate chunks and bits of graham cracker, they are drizzled with chocolate as well as a marshmallow glaze then topped with crushed graham cracker. These are incredibly easy to make and done in a flash; so be the hit of the bonfire or party with my s’mores scones!

Yield: 8

Ingredients

2 cups (10 oz) all-purpose flour

¼ cup vegan granulated sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

5 tbsp refined coconut oil, room-temperature

¾ cup vegan chocolate chunks or chocolate chips, divided

3 vegan graham cracker sheets, crushed, divided

¾ cup + 1 tbsp vegan creamer or full-fat coconut milk, divided

¼ cup vegan powdered sugar

Cooking Directions

In a food processor, pulse together the flour through the baking powder. Pulse in the oil, 1 tbsp at a time, until it resembles coarse cornmeal with some larger pieces.

Transfer to a large mixing bowl and stir in ½ cup of the chocolate chunks. Stir in the graham crackers, reserving a couple tablespoons for later. Next, slowly stir in ¾ cup of the creamer until just combined. The dough should be slightly sticky; if it’s not stir in a little more creamer.

Preheat the oven to 450 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place another baking sheet beneath the first one (this keeps the bottoms from browning).

Transfer the dough to a floured workspace and pat into an 8-inch round. Cut into 8 wedges and arrange on the baking sheet 2 inches apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through, until the tops are just golden brown. Allow to cool on a cooling rack until fully cooled.

Once the scones are completely cool, melt the remaining chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave on the defrost setting or half power until it just starts to melt. Stir with a spoon to melt completely. Drizzle over the scones.

In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and remaining creamer until smooth; add more creamer if necessary to reach the right viscosity for drizzling. Drizzle over the scones. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining crushed graham cracker crumbles. Serve with love.

This is a super quick and easy weeknight dinner that is so healthy and satisfying. It’s creamy and rich thanks to the nutritious cashew sauce yet tart and sweet. Cherry tomatoes burst in the oven alongside roasted garlic and mingle with fresh basil and miso for a sumptuous sauce that smothers hot, penne pasta.

Apparently I'm on a pasta kick?? #sorrynotsorry

This is life with a one year old... as a full-time working mom... who as of a couple of weeks ago was still pumping five times a day. Whew! Dinner must be quick and it must be easy. Quick enough that I'm not on my poor, tired feet for too long and easy enough to give that stay-at-home poppa a much needed break, while I can still keep my eye on said one year old. For some reason pasta seems to be just the ticket. Dinner has to be delicious and it better be filling: this family needs their energy.

Speaking of energy, Oliver's got a ton of it. We're loving getting outside every weekend for nordic skiing (praise be to the snow gods), where we pull the little one in the Chariot behind us. I'm thrilled that it's now light until about eight o'clock and we can get out after work for a family hike on the trails through the woods behind our house or go sledding down our ungodly long driveway (I knew it would show it's virtues eventually).

How are you spending our weekends? Do you have tips for outdoorsing with littles?

This is a super quick and easy weeknight dinner that is so healthy and satisfying. It’s creamy and rich thanks to the nutritious cashew sauce yet tart and sweet. Cherry tomatoes burst in the oven alongside roasted garlic and mingle with fresh basil and miso for a sumptuous sauce that smothers hot, penne pasta.

Preheat oven to 450° F and arrange the cherry tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet along with the garlic cloves, still in their skin. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the tomatoes burst and the garlic is roasted. Once cooled, remove the skin from the garlic.

While the cherry roast, bring a large pot of water to boil for the pasta and cook according to package. Reserve about 1 ½ cups of the water, then drain and return to the pot.

Add the garlic and tomatoes to a blender along with the remaining ingredients except of course the pasta. Blend on high until smooth and creamy. Stir well into drained pasta, adding additional water as needed to thin the sauce to your liking.

Serve hot and topped with vegan parmesan and crushed red pepper flakes, if you like. If reheating leftovers stir a little water in for a creamier sauce.